


The Perfect Storm

by bowties_Scarves_and_Plaid



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Hurt/Comfort, Jack Whump, Mac Whump, The Coltons save the day, This is a very self-indulgent fic because I love the Coltons, Violence, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-04
Updated: 2018-05-15
Packaged: 2019-05-02 00:04:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14532306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bowties_Scarves_and_Plaid/pseuds/bowties_Scarves_and_Plaid
Summary: Mac and Jack find themselves injured and separated after a mission gone wrong. Even the weather is not going their way. Luckily they happen to be near a certain bail bonds family.





	1. Chapter 1

Mama was in the back of the diner when she heard the bell ring, signaling that someone had just entered the Diner. The sound was nearly drowned out by the rain pounding against the roof, but Mama’s keen ears picked up on it. The ring put Mama on high alert because she was pretty sure that she had already locked the door for the night.

Mama grabbed her shotgun and started slowly making her way towards the front of the diner. As she did so, her phone began to buzz. She took it out of her pocket and saw that it was Billy. She was tempted to ignore it but ultimately decided against that. Knowing Billy, it could very well be a life or death situation.

“Billy now’s not exactly a good time,” Mama whispered as she answered. Although with the combination of the thunder and rain, she probably didn’t need to be whispering.

“Mama, this is important. Riley just called-”

“Honey-pie, I’m glad that you are talkin’ with your girl, but I think someone just broke into the Diner,” Mama said, interrupting her son. She was about to hang up when Billy’s frantic yelling convinced her to hear him out.

“Wait, Mama, she called to say that Jack and Mac were on a mission near us and something went wrong and they both went dark,” Billy said quickly.

“Hang on a second, Billy.”

At this new information, Mama quickly rounded the corner. She fully expected to see MacGyver and Jack, wet and smiling, standing in her Diner. Instead, she only saw her front door flung open wide letting the rain pour in. Mama turned in a slow circle with her gun raised, but she didn’t see anyone. She could hear Billy calling her from the phone, but she didn’t put it back to her ear until she completed another circle.

“Sorry, Billy, I thought someone had broken in but looks like the storm just blew the door in,” Mama said, putting down her gun and heading over to shut the door.

“Mama, Mac, and Jack could be injured and out in this storm,” Billy said. He hadn’t yet worked up to asking her what he wanted to ask, but Mama knew where this was headed.

“Billy, you know the roads tend to flood, it’s too dangerous to-” Mama cut off suddenly when she reached the threshold of the door. Because slumped up against the outside of her Diner was none other than Angus MacGyver.

“Mama?” Billy said. “Are you still there?”

“Grab your brother and sister and the medkit and meet me at the Diner,” Mama said and hung up without waiting for confirmation. She knelt down to get a better look at the soaking wet agent. Mac appeared to be unconscious, his head hung limply against his chest. Mama put her fingers against Mac’s cold neck and found a weak pulse.

“MacGyver?” Mama yelled over the storm. She cupped his chin and gently lifted up his head. Even in the dim light streaming from the diner, Mama could tell that the wound on Mac’s forehead was a nasty one. “Angus!” Mama said louder, patting the young man on his cheek. She wasn’t surprised when he didn’t stir, but it did send a wave of panic through her. The Coltons were used to patching up the minor injuries they got on the job, but MacGyver obviously needed a hospital, and Mama had no idea if they would be able to get him there.

“Mama!” Frank’s voice rang out and Mama was relieved to see the shapes of her children approaching through the rain.

“Oh god,” Jesse said once they were close enough to see Mac’s limp form and the bleeding cut on his head. Billy arrived last, carrying their large first aid kit.

“Where’s Dalton?” Billy asked looking around. When Mama shrugged helplessly, he quickly put the kit inside and then knelt next to Mama and took Mac’s pulse.

“He’s alive. Help me get him inside so I can take a proper look at him,” Mama instructed. She ignored her rising panic because her children were here now and she had to be strong for them.

Billy and Frank easily picked up Mac and carried him carefully into the diner. Jesse cleared off the counter and they placed him on top of it. Mama turned back on all of the lights and then immediately wished that she could turn them off again.

The lights revealed that Mac had not one, but three alarming injuries. In addition to his forehead, he was also bleeding profusely from a wound in his thigh and a wound in his side. He also had several bruises covering his visible skin.

“Oh, MacGyver. What did you do to yourself?” Mama said in horror

*****

_*12 Hours Earlier*_

“Hey Riles, it’s too bad you aren’t on this mission. We could’ve taken a detour to a certain diner on the way home,” Jack said into his comm, causing Mac to hit him on the arm.

“Shut up,” Riley’s annoyed voice came over the comm before Jack could complain about Mac hitting him.

“Real nice, Jack,” Mac said. Knowing that things like this were probably why Riley had taken so long to tell him about her relationship with Billy.

“Hey, how about we worry less about Riley’s love life and more about the mission?” Matty’s no-nonsense voice cut through.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Jack said, giving Mac a wink to show him that he wasn’t bothered by being reprimanded.

“Jack, you are about to break up a major drug smuggling ring, I hope you are taking this seriously,” Matty said dryly.

“Don’t worry, Matty, we’ve got this,” Jack said with a grin.


	2. Chapter 2

_*5 Hours Earlier*_

“What were you saying about having this?” Mac yelled as bullets ricocheted over their heads.

“We do have this,” Jack said, firing his gun over the crates without looking. “You’ve got this right?” He added, looking at Mac expectantly. “Because I’m running out of ammo.”

“Um,” Mac hesitated, looking around at his surroundings. He’d just started forming a plan when he heard Jack call out his name.

Mac turned around just in time to see the back end of a gun coming towards his face.

*****

“Mac, buddy, I’m gonna need you to wake up,” Jack’s voice sounded like he was far away. Mac slowly worked his way into full consciousness, wincing as the pain in his head came with it. “You with me?” Jack asked, his voice now sounded closer.

Mac opened one eye and was alarmed to find that his vision was blurry. He opened the other eye to find that one was clear. After a few confusing moments, Mac realized that this was because blood was dripping down his face and into his eye.

He tried to lift his hand to wipe off the blood, only to discover that he was tied to a chair.

“Mac?” Jack called again. Mac looked over to find his partner tied to a chair next to him. Jack looked like he’d gone a few rounds with the smugglers while Mac was out. He had the beginnings of several nasty looking bruises on his face.

“Jack,” Mac said and he watched as Jack let out a sigh of relief.

“Man, don’t scare me like that,” Jack practically yelled.

“You okay?” Mac asked, his gaze once again skimming over the bruises.

“Yeah, kid, I’m alright. I’m more worried about you,” Jack said with a grim smile.

“I’m good,” Mac responded automatically.

“That’s not true, but I’m hoping you’re at least good enough to figure out a way out of here. How hard did they ring that bell of yours?” Jack asked. Mac took a few moments to assess his injury. His head was aching for sure, but he was relieved to find that he could at least thing fairly clearly. If he had a concussion it was a minor one.

“I’m good,” Mac repeated, this time more confidently. 

“Then get us out of here bro, before the extraordinarily large smugglers come back.”

“Too late,” A voice from behind them caused Mac to jump. He craned his neck to see two of the bad guys entering the room. The one who had spoken came and stood in front of Mac. “Good, you’re awake. Maybe you will be more talkative than your friend here,” He said, gesturing at Jack.

“Oh, I doubt it, he’s the chatty one,”Mac said, putting as much confidence and sarcasm into his voice as possible. His sass earned him a punch to the cheek.

“Let’s try that again. How about we start with your name.” 

“Yeah, about that. I don’t even really tell people that I like my real name. So I’m sure not gonna tell you,” Mac said hoping his voice still sounded confident. This response earned him two more punches. He heard Jack make a noise of displeasure. Mac shot him a look, hoping to keep Jack from doing anything stupid. They couldn’t afford to show any kinds of weakness.

“How about who you work for, then. And how you found out about our operation,” The big man asked. Mac winced slightly when he saw how much the man was enjoying this. He didn’t seem to mind at all that Mac wasn’t answering his questions.

“That’s classified.” More punches, the last one connecting with his side and forcing the air out of his lungs. As Mac struggled to draw in a breath and concentrate with his now pounding head, he heard Jack speak.

“You know, it really takes one hell of a man to beat up on a kid half his size. Does it make you feel tough, huh?” Jack's drawl made the words sound casual, but Mac knew what he was doing. It was what he always did whenever they were captured. He was trying to put the attention on himself so that Mac could figure out a way out. The only problems were the bodyguard standing near the door, and Mac didn’t see anything around him that could help cut them loose.

Mac winced as Jack received a punch to his already bruised face. Jack just smiled and taunted the man again. Mac tried to tune out the sound of the punches and think, but all of the shots to his head had not done him any favors. What had been a mild concussion was probably a full-blown one.

“You seem to care more about your friend getting hurt than he does for you,” The man said, causing Mac to give him his attention again. The smuggler walked back over to Mac and pulled a gun out of his waistband. He put it right up against Mac’s thigh and gave Mac a creepy smile. Then, he turned back to look at Jack. “Either you tell me who you work for, or I put a bullet in his leg.”

“Don’t say any-” Mac started to protest, but cut off when the barrel of the gun was pressed painfully into his leg.

“What’s it going to be?” The smuggler asked Jack. Mac shook his head at his partner, silently begging him not to say anything. Jack looked back at him with a pained expression, but he kept his mouth shut.

“Very well,” The man sounded almost bored as he pulled the trigger.


	3. Chapter 3

_*3 hours earlier*_

This time around, Mac woke up quickly. Gasping as the pain in his leg brought him quickly into awareness.

Mac looked around to find that he was lying on the floor of a new room and Jack was nowhere to be seen. He looked at his leg and saw that there was a makeshift bandage around the bullet wound. The sorry excuse of a bandage was already soaking through and Mac knew that he needed to act fast.

Mac sat up slowly but a wave of dizziness still washed over him. His head was pounding and his forehead felt like it was on fire. He closed his eyes for a few moments, hoping that some of the pain would ease. When it didn’t, he forced his eyes back open and looked around the room.

Luckily for Mac, these people had no idea who they were dealing with. There was stuff everywhere and in no time at all, Mac managed to get himself free. He even managed to find some stuff to better bandage his leg.

Picking up a large pipe that he found, Mac limped his way out of the door. He was shocked to see that his room had been left unguarded. They probably hadn’t expected him to wake up, let alone break free.

Mac wandered into several rooms, shocked but grateful that he didn’t run into anyone. He soon figured out why when he reached one of the main rooms. All of the bad guys were preoccupied with packing up. Mac and Jack finding their compound had freaked them out so there were relocating.

Mac finally found the room where he and Jack had been held, but to Mac’s dismay, it was empty. Mac struggled to remember what had happened after he was shot. Where had they taken Jack? The pain and blood loss made it hard to remember anything.

Mac’s plan was to continue to search until he found Jack, but unfortunately, he took a turn and found himself face to face with a smuggler.

Mac’s slowed reflexes quickly lost him the element of surprise. He was able to knock away the smuggler’s gun with his pipe, but then the bad guy pulled out a knife. He swiped at Mac, and Mac tried to dodge, but his injured leg made that difficult. The knife sliced across Mac’s side and Mac dropped the pipe and fell to his knees in shock and pain. The impact jarred his leg and Mac had to fight to stay conscious.

Mac was somehow able to block the next blow with one of his hands. With the other, he struggled to reach for the pipe he had dropped. He finally got a hold of it and swung it at the smuggler with all of the strength he had left.

The bad guy collapsed and Mac practically cried in relief. He slowly got to his feet, leaning heavily against the wall for support. He had to rethink his plan. He was of no use to Jack in this condition and if he ran into another smuggler he most certainly would not be able to fight his way out.

Mac spotted a truck parked outside of the building. He knew that the only thing he could do was leave and come back with reinforcements. And Mac knew exactly where to find them.

*****

_*20 Minutes Earlier*_

Mac could practically see the lights of Mama’s Diner in the distance when the car got stuck. He was honestly shocked that he had even made it that far. He was finding it hard to focus on the task of driving, let alone driving in the awful weather.

Mac was almost relieved when the car spun out and got stuck in a ditch. Now he wouldn’t have to think so hard. All he had to do was get himself to Mama’s.

_*Present Time*_

“Mama?” Jesse’s voice caused Mama to shake off the shock that turning on the lights had given her. Specifically, it was the fear in Jesse’s voice that made her spring back into action.

“Jesse, you clean and bandage that wound on his forehead. Frank, you get that damn Jacket off of him so we can get a better look at his side. And Billy, call Riley,” Mama instructed. Each of her children immediately started performing the tasks she’d asked.

Mama cut away the makeshift bandage around Mac’s leg. Her stomach dropped when she saw that it was a bullet wound.

“Is that…?” Frank, who was standing next to her trailed off his question.

“A bullet hole? Yes. How’s his side looking?” Mama refused to let her emotions get in the way of treating MacGyver.

“It’s a pretty long cut, but it’s not too deep. It might not even need stitches,” Frank said. Out of all of her children, Frank was the best with this kind of stuff. Billy was the worst, that’s why Mama had given him the task that she had.

“Mama! I can’t get through to anyone,” Billy called to her in alarm.

“Okay, Frank, you remember how to field dress a bullet wound right? I want you to do that while I help your brother try to figure out how to get this boy some real medical attention. Jesse, you clean up his side once you are done with his head,” Mama moved away from MacGyver, hating the feeling of his blood on her hands.

She quickly tried to wash off as much blood as possible and then found Billy in the kitchen. Billy was currently trying to get their landline to work.

“I think the phone lines are down! And I can’t get any service on my cell phone,” Billy said when he saw Mama. She took out her own phone and saw that it too had no service.

“Damn storm,” Mama cursed.

“Mama, what are we gonna do?” Billy asked.

Mama was saved from having to answer that unanswerable question by the Diner going dark.


	4. Chapter 4

“Damn storm,” Mama repeated into the darkness.

“I’ll go get the backup generator going,” Billy said, turning on the flashlight on his phone.

Mama used her own phone to find a couple of flashlights and then brought them out to where Jesse and Frank were still working on Mac.

“Billy’s gonna get the lights back on, but the phones are out,” Mama said, pointing two flashlights at Mac. “How’s he doing’?” 

“Not so good, Mama,” Frank said honestly. “We’re doing everything we can, but he lost a lot of blood and really needs to get to a hospital.”

“Not to mention, we have no idea what kind of damage his brain received,” Jesse said, grimacing as she brushed Mac’s wet and bloody hair off of his face. Mac was giving no signs of waking up, which was making Mama increasingly nervous. It was unnerving to see the usually vibrant agent so lifeless.

“Okay...okay…” Mama smoothed down her hair and tried to think of the best course of action. The lights came back on and Mama was relieved that at the very least, one thing was going right for them. “Frank, darling, will you go run down the road and see if there is any way we would be able to drive out of here?”

It was a long shot as the main road usually always flooded, but Mama didn’t see any other option. 

Frank nodded and started heading towards the door. Before he could leave, however, the front door was flung open and a very wet Jack Dalton stumbled inside.

*****

_*3 Hours Earlier*_

Jack tried desperately not to think about how Mac had looked when they had dragged him away. The head wound had been bad enough, but the shot to the leg was worse. Mac had passed out pretty quickly after he was shot and the main smuggler had found this boring and ordered that he be taken away.

So Mac had been roughly taken away, leaving a trail of blood in his wake.

The man had looked prepared to give Jack a similar treatment but he paused when a new figure entered the room. He whispered something into the smuggler’s ear and then left. The smuggler turned to Jack with that creepy smile again.

“Well, looks like we will have to put this little chat on hold. The big boss has ordered that we pack up and move our operation immediately. He also wants to have a chat of his own with you, so you are coming with us,” The man sneered. Jack wanted desperately to ask about Mac, but he didn’t want to do anything to anger the man into hurting Mac further. The smuggler seemed to guess what was on Jack’s mind, however, because he added, “Your friend probably wouldn’t last the trip, and we don’t need the extra baggage. Louisiana's not such a bad place to die.”

The man spoke casually and Jack wanted to punch him in his smug face more than anything. But he forced himself to stay calm. His plan would not work if he freaked out now.

Mac had replaced Jack’s leather cuff after Chernobyl, and he’d added a special pocket into the inside of it. Mac had proudly shown him the small blade and paperclip that he’d placed inside. “Because we always end up tied up and you always expect me to pull off a miracle to get us out.” Mac had said.

Jack could not be more glad that for once in his life, Mac had planned ahead.

He had been slowly cutting away the ropes whenever he could manage. If what he was doing was discovered, he would have no way to escape and rescue Mac. So he had to keep his cool for the time being. That bastard smuggler would get what was coming to him.

Suddenly, the same man from before burst into the room. This time, however, he did not bother with whispering.

“That man,” He practically spat. Jack noticed that he had blood dripping from his forehead. Jack felt a ray of hope because there was only one person who could make a bad guy that angry.

“What happened?” The main smuggler asked in a deadly calm voice.

“The blonde, he escaped, I don’t know how. We fought, I managed to cut him once, but then he knocked me out with this pipe...he’s gone,” The man finished his sentence in a quiet voice as he looked at the fury on the face of his boss.

“You’re telling me that an injured, skinny kid managed to get the better of you?”

“He...he took me by surprise...he’s well trained,” The bleeding man sputtered.

“We will continue this discussion later, for now, we must focus on getting out of here,” The head smuggler said. Then he turned to Jack, who was grinning from ear to ear. Jack hadn’t been able to keep the smile off of his face when he’d learned that Mac had escaped. That meant that Mac was at least okay enough to be able to knock a guy out. Jack could only hope that Mac made it somewhere safe. Somewhere like a hospital or Mama's Diner.

“Don’t be upset at your man, that kid manages to take a lot of people by surprise. He’s very resourceful,” Jack couldn’t help but tease. The smuggler growled and then punched Jack several times in the ribs. It may have just been Jack’s overactive imagination, but he swore he heard something crack.

As Jack struggled to breathe, the man took back out his gun and pointed it at Jack’s head. The bad guy looked crazy enough that for a few moments Jack thought that he might actually pull the trigger.

“You’re lucky that my boss wants you alive,” The man said finally. Then he spun the gun in his hand and gave Jack the same treatment that Mac had received a few hours earlier.


	5. Chapter 5

_*2 hours earlier*_

Jack woke up in the back of a truck. His head and ribs were aching and the erratic way the truck was moving was not helping.

As Jack became more aware, he heard the sounds of shouting and rain pouring against the vehicle. It sounded like they were having difficulty driving in the storm.

Jack checked the ropes binding him and was relieved to find that they still were the same ones that he’d been tied with before.

The bad guys were too distracted to notice that Jack was awake, so he closed his eyes again and resumed working on cutting through the ropes. He just had to buy his time and wait for the right moment to break free.

As he worked, he prayed that Mac had made it to the Coltons and that they hadn't driven him too far away while he was unconscious.

*****

_*Present Time*_

“When I got myself untied, I was able to take them by surprise and overpower them. I stole their truck and drove it as far as I could,” Jack finished. The Colton’s had brought him a blanket and Jesse had insisted on cleaning and bandaging his wounds. 

Jack tried to insist that Mac need their help more, but they just said that they had done all they could for Mac. Jack had wanted to stay by Mac’s side, but when he’d almost passed out, he’d succumbed to the Coltons' insistence that he sit down. However, his eyes never left Mac’s still form as he talked.

“So the road is flooded?” Mama asked a look of distress on her face.

“Yeah, about a mile down the road. But the truck is on the other side of it, so maybe if we can get Mac to it, we can make it to a hospital,” Jack said, although he had no idea where the nearest hospital was and if any other roads were flooded.

“Before we do anything, let me reset your shoulder,” Frank said.

“You failed to mention how you did that,” Jesse pointed out.

“Oh, it’s an old injury. Doesn’t take a lot of effort to pop it out. One of the guys managed to twist my arm while I was fighting my way out of the truck,” Jack was about to shrug, then he realized it wasn’t a good idea.

“I’ve reset shoulders before, and it will feel better once I do,” Frank said, pulling out a sling from their extensive medkit.

“Yeah, just do it” Jack gritted out. He had thought that with the pain he was feeling all over the rest of his body, the pain of resetting his shoulder wouldn’t be that noticeable.

He was wrong. He had to bite back a scream as white-hot pain flared in his shoulder and down his arm and back. Frank efficiently reset his shoulder and then placed his arm in a sling. Jack just focused on breathing as the pain slowly ebbed down to a dull ache.

“Okay...now let’s get Mac to the hospital,” Jack said, standing up and staggering over to Mac. The young agent was covered in a blanket, but he was still cold when Jack stroked his cheek.

Before anyone could answer him, a shrill ring bounced around the Diner, causing everyone to jump. Billy frantically pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at it in amazement.

“Riley?” He asked when he answered. At the sound of her name, Jack’s felt as if a weight was lifted off of his chest. He waved his hand and Billy put the phone on speaker. “Riley, how did you get cell reception back?”

“A very technical way that isn’t important right now. Have you heard anything from Mac or Jack?” Riley’s voice was tense and worried.

“Yeah, baby, we’re both here,” Jack said, taking the phone out of Billy’s hand. He heard something that sounded suspiciously like a sob from the other side of the line.

“Jack, Mac, are you guys okay?” Bozer’s voice joined the call. Jack hesitated, not wanting to freak out the already worried agents.

“Jack, what’s wrong?” This was Matty, picking up on Jack’s hesitation.

“Mac’s hurt, real bad. And the storm has made the roads inaccessible. There is a vehicle a mile down the road, but we don’t know if the roads to the hospital will even be clear if we can make it to the truck,” Jack said, his frustration at their situation growing with each word he spoke.

“Jack, it’s going to be okay. We are going to get you guys help. I called in a favor to a helicopter pilot who is used to flying in adverse weather. He will be there in ten minutes. Riley, Bozer, and I are on the Phoenix jet and we will be setting down soon. We will meet you at the hospital,” Matty spoke in her best reasonable, calming tone. It was times like this when Jack was grateful that she was their boss. Her ability to handle a crisis situation was unrivaled.

“You’re all coming?” Jack asked, his voice sounded weaker than he would’ve liked.

“Yes, Jack, we’ll be there soon,” Riley’s voice came back. She still sounded close to tears, but there was now a new determination in her voice.

“Good,” Jack felt an unbelievable relief at that fact.

“Dalton, I need you to tell me what Mac’s injuries are so I can brief the medic on the helicopter and the doctors at the hospital,” Matty said, getting back to business now that Jack had his emotions more under control.

“Um, he um…” Jack looked at Mac and ran his knuckles gently across the uninjured side of his forehead. He felt the phone being taken out of his hand and looked to see that it was Mama.

“Ms. Matty, it’s Mama. He has a nasty cut on his forehead as well as multiple bruises on his face. Based on Jack’s descriptions of the events, I’d say it’s safe to assume he has a concussion. He also has a large but fairly superficial cut on his side. The worst injury is the bullet wound in his thigh,” Mama spoke in a professional tone. The way that doctors spoke when relaying information about a patient. Jack was thankful for her because he wasn’t sure if he would’ve been able to get to words out. Especially when both Riley and Bozer’s gasps could be heard.

“Thank you, Mama,” Matty said her tone surprised but genuine.

“And as for Dalton, he probably has a concussion as well. Along with some possibly broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder,” Mama continued, ignoring the glare that Jack sent her. He made a weak attempt to get the phone back, but Mama easily overpowered him.

“That doesn’t surprise me, one bit. Thank you for taking care of my agents,” Matty said again.

“Don’t mention it, despite how hard my life suddenly gets every time they show up, I have a soft spot for these boys,” Mama said, giving Jack a wink.

“Mama, I know exactly how you feel,” Matty said with a heavy sigh. Despite the dire circumstances, Jack couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Mama and Matty bonding.

Mama hung up the phone and walked over to Mac. She took his hand and Jack was slightly surprised to see her let out a sigh of relief. A few seconds ago, she had looked like the definition of confidence. Now Jack realized that she had been putting on a brave front. She looked up and saw that Jack was watching her.

“I hate to admit it, but I was genuinely worried,” Mama said with a small smile.

“It’s not over yet,” Jack said. He knew that the ball of tension in his stomach would not easy until Mac was safe and awake and smiling.

“You’re right, but at least now we know help is coming. Speaking of that, Jesse and Frank, you two grab a couple flares and put them out in the parking lot so that helicopter knows right where to land,” Mama instructed.

Her two children did exactly as she asked. Jack was surprised to see that they didn’t even complain about going on in the rain. It was obvious that Mama had her children’s respect.

“Mama?” Billy said, slightly hesitantly. “Are we gonna...can we meet them at the hospital?”

“Oh, my sweet boy,” Mama said with a grin. “Of course, as soon as the copter comes, we will go get that truck.”

“Okay,” Billy said, looking relieved. “I want to be there for Riley.”

Jack had to admit that until that point he hadn’t been sure how he felt about Billy and Riley’s relationship. But seeing that Billy knew how hard this was on Riley and wanted to make sure that she had some support, made Jack feel a whole lot better about the whole situation. He still wasn't sold on Billy, but this made Jack decide to at least try to give him a chance.

The sound of helicopter blades brought Jack back to his very harsh reality.


	6. Chapter 6

Mac woke up in the helicopter, and it was not a gradual wake up. He was unconscious one moment and the next moment he was gasping and flailing and knocking things over in the small space. Before anyone knew what was happening, he had somehow managed to unstrap himself and was staggering to his feet. He damn near fell out of the helicopter.

Luckily, Matty’s medic had quick reflexes and he made sure that Mac stayed inside of the vehicle. Jack was eternally grateful because his pounding head had slowed down his reflexes greatly.

“Whoa, whoa, Mac buddy, you’re okay. It’s okay,” Jack said, reaching out with his good arm and putting his hand on Mac’s shoulder. At the sound of his voice, Mac stilled and took a few moments to actually take in his surroundings.

With Mac a bit calmer, Jack and the Medic were able to guide him back to the gurney. They gently pushed Mac down to a sitting position and the Medic started to reattach the I.V. that Mac had ripped out.

“Jack?” Mac’s eyes were wide and unfocused as he looked at Jack.

“I’m here, brother,” Jack said, squeezing his shoulder lightly.

“You're hurt,” Mac said softly, looking at Jack’s face. He was squinting like he was having trouble making out Jack's face, even though it was right in front of him. Jack felt a stab of panic as he saw how confused Mac looked.

“You’re worse, kid,” Jack said and turned his attention to the medic. “How’s he looking?”

“Not great, he reopened the barely clotted wound on his leg. I have to stop the bleeding now, he can’t afford to lose any more blood, he is going to go into shock. The fluid I.V. will help, but what he really needs is a blood transfusion. I am going to sedate him to ensure that he doesn’t aggravate any of his injuries. That will also put less stress on his body systems,” The medic spoke as he worked.

Mac was swaying slightly in his seat, so Jack wrapped his arm fully around his shoulders, and Mac leaned some of his weight against jack.

“Everythin’ hurts,” Mac groaned as if he just realized how beat up his body was.

“I know, Mac, but Doc here is gonna fix you up. How about you lay back?” Jack said as he tried to guide Mac back to a lying position.

“No,” Mac shook his head and then hissed at the pain that caused.

“Buddy, don’t argue with me. You need to rest,” Jack said, trying to push him back down again. Mac may have been injured, but he resisted Jack with surprising strength. Jack could’ve easily overpowered him, but he didn’t want to cause Mac any more pain.

“Don’t wanna sleep,” Mac mumbled, sounding like a petulant child. Jack knew how much Mac despised drug-induced sleep, but they didn’t really have any other options.

“Doc?” Jack asked. The Medic, who probably had been briefed by Matty about Mac, nodded and pulled out a needle.

The medic gestured for Jack to hold Mac, so he tightened his grip on the kid’s shoulder. Luckily for them, Mac’s brain wasn’t firing at its normal speed, so he completely missed that entire exchange, as well as when the medic injected new medicine into his I.V.

After a few moments, Mac was pretty much leaning his entire weight against Jack and he knew that he was the only thing keeping the young agent upright. Jack looked down at him and saw that he was blinking slowly like he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

Jack nodded at the Medic and the two of them eased Mac down onto his back. Mac didn’t fight them on it this time, just allowed them to situate him on the gurney. Jack brushed Mac’s bangs off of his forehead and Mac closed his eyes. This time, they stayed closed.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief and sat back down as the Medic bucked Mac in and put a blanket over him.

“Is he going to be okay?” Jack asked quietly. The Medic gave him a brief kind smile, but Jack could tell that he was worried.

“We are almost at the hospital,” Was the only answer he gave.

*****

Normally, Jack hated getting checked over after missions. Especially when he had already diagnosed each of his injuries and knew exactly how to treat them. Having a doctor or nurse check him out was just wasted the time of everyone involved.

Now, however, he didn’t mind it. Mac had been whisked away as soon as the helicopter had touched down. He had been rushed into surgery where he would be for a few hours. That left Jack with a lot of time to kill.

The pain of getting poked and prodded by the nurse checking him over was a welcome distraction. He could concentrate on what she was doing versus just brooding over Mac’s condition.

The nurse instructed Jack on what to do for a concussion and broken ribs, but he didn’t bother paying attention. Then, she let him go back into the waiting room and promised to give him news on Mac as soon as she heard anything.

Jack walked down the hallway in a daze, until raised voices caught his attention.

“You listen to me, that boy was just bleeding all over my counter. Now, I know he’s here, and you are going to tell me where!”

Jack rounded the corner to see 4 very wet, very angry looking Coltons going toe to toe with one of the nurses. The poor man that Mama was yelling at looked like he was about to cry.

“Mama,” Jack said and everyone in the room turned to look at him.

“Oh, thank god,” Mama said in relief. “How’s MacGyver?”

“I don’t know,” Jack said honestly. He sat down heavily as everything had just happened started to catch up with him. He was tired and sore physically, but he was also emotionally drained. The Coltons immediately sat down in the chairs surrounding him and the Nurse fled the room as quickly as he could.

“He’ll be okay, Jack,” Jesse said, rubbing soothing circles on his back. Jack wished he could believe her, but he kept remembering how pale and weak Mac had been and how he had looked at Jack with wide, unfocused eyes. And he kept remembering how the helicopter medic being unable to give him a straight answer and how the doctors had rushed Mac away as soon as he arrived.

“I just...I wish someone would let me know how he is…” Jack said in frustration, burying his face in his hands.

“I can help with that,” Jack’s head snapped up at the sound of Matty’s voice. His anxiety eased when he saw Matty, Riley, and Bozer walking towards him. He got up quickly and gave them all gentle, awkward hugs.

“Jack, are you okay?” Riley asked, looking over him worriedly.

“Nothing I haven’t dealt with before, Riles,” Jack said as brightly as he could muster. He even forced out a small smile for her benefit, but Riley looked like she wasn’t buying it. “I’m just worried about Mac. I’ve been here for...well I don’t know really...but I haven’t heard anything,” Jack said, faltering when he realized he had no idea what time it was.

“Let me see if I can change that,” Matty said and started marching towards the nearest Doctor. Jack sat back down and let Matty take control, glad that she was there to take care of things. He didn’t currently have the mental energy to do anything but worry about Mac.

Therefore, he was also glad when Billy took Riley and Bozer aside to fully explain the situation to them. Billy had all of the facts (except Mac’s side of the story, but no one had that except Mac) so he was able to fill in the gaps in Riley and Bozer’s knowledge.

Jack sat in a daze until Matty came back. The expression on her face made him stand up in alarm. His movement attracted the attention of the rest of the people in the waiting room, who also turned to Matty.

“Matilda?” Jack managed to force out her name.

“He’s still in surgery for his leg. They think he is going to pull through, but he’s lost a lot of blood and is extremely weak. He crashed once…” Matty had been speaking in a detached voice, but she couldn’t keep the emotion from her voice on the last part. Jack was unable to deal with the thought of Mac dying, so he just focused on the fact that they thought Mac would pull through. Matty took a deep breath and continued, ignoring the gasps and sounds of distress from the team. “They got him back and were able to continue to repair the damage to his leg. Now, they are mostly worried about the swelling in his brain. They will take him to get a CAT scan after surgery. If the swelling is bad, they might have to keep him sedated until it goes down.”

Jack was surprised that Matty had gotten so much information about Mac’s condition. Normally doctors didn’t like to tell family anything until they were sure about the patient’s condition. Then again, he should never doubt Matty’s ability to get information out of people.

“You’re talking about a medically induced coma?” Riley said, bringing attention to the last thing that Matty had said. At the word ‘coma’, Jack’s blood ran cold. His hands clenched into fists as if he could physically fight away Matty’s response.

“Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter to go!! Thank you, everyone, for your kind comments. Each and everyone absolutely makes my day!!!


	7. Chapter 7

_*3 days later*_

“Alright, Mac buddy, your Doc said that the swelling in that big brain of yours went down enough for them to take you off of sedatives. She said that it might take you a while to wake up, but I know how much you love to defy the odds,” Jack spoke as he stroked Mac’s hair.

It had been a long few days for the team and the Coltons. All of whom insisted on staying in the hospital for a much time as possible. The first night, they had all stayed in the waiting room for hours until Mac’s doctor had finally come out and told them that he was stable and in a recovery room.

Jack, Riley, Bozer, and Matty had immediately insisted on being taken to Mac. The doctor warned them that he would be unresponsive and that seeing him might be a shock, but Jack had assured the doctor that they could handle it. After all, he’d seen Mac severely injured in a hospital room many times before. He’d seen Mac shot, beaten, poisoned, stabbed, and damn near blown up. 

As it turned out, Jack discovered that he’d never get used to the sight of his partner lying lifeless in a hospital bed. As soon as he had walked in, he was overcome by the very same panic he’d felt the first time Mac had been injured and every subsequent time.

The white bandage on Mac’s forehead had almost blended into his translucent skin while the bruises on his face were only made more apparent by his paleness. There were way too many tubes and machines connected to Mac and the consistent beeping did little to ease Jack’s worry.

No one had said anything as they gathered around Mac’s bed. Riley and Bozer were both fighting back tears while Matty and Jack were fighting the urge to punch something. All of them had felt wholly useless.

The Phoenix team and the Coltons had spent the rest of the night and the next 2 days filtering through Mac’s room. They would take breaks for food and coffee and quick naps, but no one wanted to be too far away from Mac.

Matty had finally convinced everybody to go back to the Coltons’ to sleep last night. Everybody but Jack that is. Riley and Bozer hadn’t wanted to go, but Jack had reminded them that Mac wouldn’t be waking up without a heads up and that he would stay with stay with him. The two younger agents were so physically and emotionally exhausted that they had eventually agreed.

They had grumbled about it, but they had left.

Jack had spent another sleepless night in a very uncomfortable hospital chair. He couldn’t bring himself to sleep, because every little sound, even if it was in a room down the hall, caused him to jump into alertness. He was just too on edge, too afraid that Mac would take a turn for the worse.

And now, finally, earlier that morning, the doctor had told him that she was taking Mac off of the sedatives. Now, they just had to hope and pray that Mac woke up and that when he did, there were no signs of brain injury.

Brain injury was a scary thing to hear in regards to a loved one. But when that loved one was a genius who used his smarts to save lives, those two words were so much worse.

The Doctor had said that she was hopeful that there would be minimal damage, but of course, she couldn’t give a definite answer until MacGyver woke up. Jack was pretty much in denial that anything like that could happen to Mac. The man's brain was just too special and important to be damaged.

“Come on, Kid, I think you’ve gotten quite enough rest,” Jack urged.

*****

_*1 Day Later*_

“Jack,” Riley shook him awake gently. 

“Hmm?” He said sleepily, trying to stretch out the kinks in his back. He was too old to be spending so many nights sleeping in an uncomfortable chair. He hoped he wouldn’t have to spend too many more nights in the goddamn hospital.

Mac has started waking up yesterday, but he’d yet to maintain consciousness long enough to determine his mental state. This was way worse than when he’d been in the medically induced coma. Every time he woke up, Jack prayed he’d be able to get a response from his partner. So far, he’d had no luck and the waiting was driving him crazy. At least they had been able to take the tube out of Mac’s mouth, so he looked a bit more normal.

“Look,” Riley nudged him. Jack looked towards the bed and was immediately fully awake. Mac’s blue eyes were opened and looking in their direction. Jack knew it might just be wishful thinking, but he thought Mac’s eyes seemed clearer than they had before.

“Hey, buddy,” Jack said, standing up and walking over to the bed. He was pleased to see that Mac’s eyes followed his movements.

“J-Jack” Mac said softly, the word barely reaching Jack’s ears. But it was enough. The tears he’d been holding back for days finally came. Jack found himself laughing and crying at the same time.

Mac was going to be okay.

*****

_*2 Weeks Later*_

“Be with you in a minute,” Mama called out automatically as the door dinged, not looking up from the table she was cleaning.

“I should probably be the one doing that,” A familiar voice spoke from behind her. Mama whirled around to see Angus MacGyver grinning at her. "After all, I made quite the mess last time I was here."

He was propped up on crutches and still looked pretty beat up, but he was a sight for sore eyes. Mama had visited him in the hospital of course, but it was good to see him upright and out of that god awful place.

“They finally released you?” Mama said, pulling out a chair and gesturing for Mac to take a seat. Mac did so, moving considerably more gingerly than he normally did.

“I don’t know who is more relieved, me or my doctor,” Mac said with another smile.

“Yeah, Matty was telling me that you are a horrible patient,” Mama responded.

“You and Matty have been chatting?” Mac asked, raising the eyebrow on the uninjured side of his forehead.

“I’ve spent a lot of quality time with your team, MacGyver, and I gotta say, I like Miss Matty’s style,” Mama said.

“I’m not surprised you two get along, you both share a lot of the same traits. Strong, independent, great leaders...plus you both have families who tend to get themselves into trouble.”

“True, but from the sounds of it, she’s got it worse,” Mama said. Mac let out a soft chuckle that showed off his dimple.

“Yes, because she has me. And speaking of that, I wanted to come thank you, and your family, for everything you did for me. From what Jack tells me, I owe you my life. I’m not sure if I can ever repay you, but if you ever need anything, just pick up the phone,” Mac said, his smile fading as he grew serious. Mama saw that he was sincere in his offer. She believed that he really would drop everything and come to her aid if she called.

“I didn’t do this for any favors or payoffs Agent MacGyver. I did it because you are a good man and I’ve grown pretty fond of you,” Mama had no problem admitting her affection for the tenacious young man.

“I know that, which is why I will always be a phone call away,” Mac said, determined to try to pay her back anyway.

“I’ll keep that in mind, MacGyver,” Mama said. She stood up and grabbed a couple boxes of her freshly baked pie. “Now come one, I’ll walk you out to your car.”

Mac delicately got himself into a standing position. Mama hated seeing him struggle, but she knew that he would not appreciate her help, so she didn’t offer. Instead, she carried the pie out to where Jack was leaning against the car, waiting for Mac. The bruises covering his face matched Mac’s, as did his smile.

“I feel like after everything we put you through, we shouldn’t accept this from you,” Jack said, even as he eagerly took the pie from her hands.

“Look, if you boys really wanna do somethin’ for me, you’ll promise to never show up on my doorstep bleedin’ and half dead again,” Mama said, looking mostly at Mac. Her tone was lighthearted, but she was wasn’t joking. She wasn’t sure if she’d be able to handle an experience like this again.

“We will try our best, Mama,” Mac said. It wasn’t exactly the answer she’d been looking for, but she knew it was the best she’d get.

“You two take care of yourselves,” She said, giving them both gentle hugs.

“You too, Mama,” Jack said. His arm was out of the sling, but Mama noticed that he still had it cradled protectively against his torso. She was struck by just how tough the two men standing in front of her were. They were both obviously still in pain, yet they had smiles on their faces.

“I’m serious, take a vacation, relax a bit. The world needs both of you in it and it needs both of you whole,” Mama said, surprising herself slightly at how much she cared about the two ridiculous agents.

“We will, Mama,” Mac said, stepping forward to kiss her on the cheek. “Thank you again, and pass my thanks on to your family.”

“Will do,” Mama said with a smile. She watched as MacGyver and Dalton got into the car and sped away. Mama was glad that Mac was finally healthy enough to go back to L.A., but she did have to admit that she was going to miss him.

Even though MacGyver tended to muck up her life every time he showed up, he also brought a lot of joy into it. So, Mama intended to use her phone call, even if it was just an excuse to see Mac and his team again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whooooo, I'm finally done!!! What did y'all think of it?? 
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me for this :-D


End file.
